In ancient monasteries, a statue of the smiling Maitreya Bodhisattva is usually found at the mountain gate to symbolizing a joyful welcoming to devotees. However, sometimes power is also necessary to subdue the stubborn minds that refuse to embrace compassion and loving-kindness. Therefore, when immediately behind the mountain gate is usually a Four Heavenly Kings Shrine which enshrines the four great vajra kings , or Qielan (Sangharama) Bodhisattva and Weituo (Skanda) Bodhisattv . In other words, while Buddhism emphasizes the practice of loving-kindness and compassion, power is still needed to ensure the effectiveness of such practice. In the mundane world, the weak are the prey of the strong. Thus, at times like this, we need the power of the vajras to fight against mara. Therefore, a spiritual practitioner not only needs to have the compassionate mind of a bodhisattva, an imposing appearance is also necessary. If one is able to apply compassion and majestic forces equally; and also be able to guide sentient beings without being too strict or too loose, then continued existence of the Dharma in this world can be ensured.







【Key Words】

Maitreya Bodhisattva：彌勒菩薩

Four Heavenly Kings Shrine：四天王殿

Four great vajra kings：四大金剛

Qielan (Sangharama) Bodhisattva：伽籃

菩薩

Weitou (Skanda) Bodhisattva：韋陀菩薩